Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises
Centre of Excellence for Khadi
The Government of India, through the Khadi and Village Industries Commission , is establishing a Centre of Excellence for Khadi  with the technical support of National Institute of Fashion Technology , New Delhi at NIFT Delhi  and its four spokes at Gandhinagar, Kolkata, Shillong and Bengaluru, to help Khadi Institutions to effectively design, produce and market high quality differentiated Khadi products in the Indian and global market. Under the project, CoEK has created a Knowledge Portal for Khadi in which designs and specifications with sketches are uploaded for viewing by Khadi Institutions for replication.
The objectives of the project are:
- Creation of new fabrics/ products based on season-wise colour forecast/fashion trends.
- Disseminate quality standards for Khadi fabrics and clothing for high end domestic and global market.
- Branding and publicity by creating interesting narratives around the new Khadi fabrics and products.
- Create visual merchandising and packaging for new Khadi products.
- Increase the global reach of Khadi by organizing or participating in Khadi Fashion shows and exhibitions.
The details of the measures taken under CoEK to strengthen Khadi institutions working across the country are at Annexure.
The Ministry has sanctioned an amount of Rs.20.00 crore for establishing the Centre of Excellence for Khadi, out of which Rs. 15.00 crore has been released.
Annexure
The details of the measures taken under CoEK to strengthen Khadi institutions working across the country are as follows:
- CoEK teams carried out detailed diagnostic reports by visiting more than 20 Khadi Institutions to understand their processes of spinning, weaving, processing, value addition, sales, marketing etc. The gaps were identified and the unique selling proposition, as well as the potential of the KIs was understood.
- Keeping in view the mandate of the project, the team started the design process by selecting the existing fabrics in the stocks of KI and, based on their industry experience, decided to design for young clients, keeping in view the weight, drape and colours. The design team at CoEK did intensive research on the forecast, market survey, brand study, and silhouette rationalization to analyze the market trends. Each team deliberated and presented their research, themes, designs and silhouettes before finalizing their design brief, which defined the target clientele, age group, and looks. The collections were planned, keeping in mind the capacity of the KIs. The process included sketches, test fits, iterations and finally, sampling. After the samples were approved, specification and cost sheets were prepared to be shared with KIs.
- CoEK team designed 8 collections comprising of 48 Ensembles, 4 collections of home fashion , 91 designs for yardages and 24 Sarees in six months duration.
- CoEK has participated in Fashion Shows organized at the National Institute of Fashion Technology , New Moti Bagh and CAG office to showcase the designs and get feedback on the collections.
- An Influencer meet was organized by M/o Culture in collaboration with NIFT, in which renowned industry stake holders such content creators, designers and stylists were invited. CoEK organized a hand spinning workshop and demonstration for the participants, an impromptu run way walk to give an experience of Khadi. A panel discussion titled ‘Khadi- A fabric that weaved India’s Independence’ was moderated by the Director-CoEK, in which designers took part.
- CoEK introduced ‘Svadha’ wellness collection in Khadi for pan generation consumers to showcase the versatility of Khadi on International Yoga Day on 21st June, 2022.
- All 8 collections of apparel, home and sarees have been documented as Design Catalogues/ look books, and have been shared with selected KIs online. The KIs have been approached to initiate the process of production of the designs. The CoEK team has offered to hand hold in production by trouble shooting during the process.
- Under the project, CoEK team has created a Knowledge Portal for Khadi which was launched on 14.07.2022, in which design directions and forecast for colours, trends, silhouettes, print, weave and embroidery ideas have been presented for Khadi Institutions. The Size charts are also shared on the portal for viewing by stakeholders, for replication.
- 5S implementation in 5 Khadi Institutions was organized. This is based on Japanese Kaizen technique of sorting out the inventory and workspace in order to make effective and organized production.
- Training workshops on quality standards, defect identification and heir rectification and effective techniques of fabric cutting were conducted in two KIs.
- Natural dyeing workshops have been conducted in the NER.
- Women weavers of Chullyu, Arunachal Pradesh were given two months training in weaving and natural dyeing. They are now fully trained to weave home products.
This information was given by Minister of State for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, Shri Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.